How upgrading your boiler can reduce CO2 emissions

Upgrading your boiler to an A-rated one could mean more heat for less money and a big cut in your carbon footprint.

Heating a home and water is the biggest cost a household faces each month, according to statistics, however people still don’t realise that upgrading a boiler can save money as it produces the same amount of heat for less money and reduced carbon emissions.

The best new condensing boilers convert more than 90% of their fuel in to heat in comparison to the 70% or less than the average boiler. A condensing boiler has a bigger heat exchanger than a normal boiler because it captures some of the heat that would otherwise escape through the flue.

How will changing boilers make a difference?

• Changing from a low rated boiler to an A-rated condensing boiler could save a household over a tonne of CO2 emissions.
• Making the change could save around £100 about a quarter of an average heating bill. Also upgrading your heating controls on your condensing boiler can save an extra £90.
• If you change your boiler to a more energy efficient boiler then across the UK we could save enough energy to heat 3.7 million homes for a year the equivalent to 13 million tonnes of CO2 emissions
• It is also important to remember that any boiler that is serviced regularly should be safe, as most incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning are caused by old or poorly maintained boilers.

To achieve the maximum efficiency from a condensing boiler, they need to be set in ‘condensing mode’, this means it needs to heat more than five radiators at full heat, this does not apply to all condensing boilers though. Even due to this condensing boilers are still more energy efficient than non condensing boilers.

Most boilers live for over 20 years, so if it is energy efficient then it doesn’t make sense to replace it. However it the boiler is old and the house is large then you will generally save money and emissions with a traditional boiler. There is also the question of whether an oil fired or gas boiler is more energy efficient. The best oil boilers are still 6% more energy efficient than the best gas boiler but they do emit more CO2 overall. The reason for this is that oil is much more carbon intensive than gas.

How to go about changing to a condensing boiler

First you need to check the efficiency of your boiler with SEDBUK, if your boiler is getting old and is less than an A-grade then you should consider replacing it with a gas condensing boiler. You should hire a registered installer and see if you are entitled to a heating grant. It is best to consider changing your boiler to a new condensing boiler when you are fitting a new kitchen or bathroom as it will considerably lessen the disruption and additional costs.